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My Diabetes Scare

About 2 weeks ago, I was not feeling that great. To be frank, I was urinating a bit too much. I initially thought I might have some kind of kidney or bladder infection. Of course, I was making a self-diagnosis; something we should never do. I decided I would go to the urgent care center. I was hoping for some antibiotics that would clear things up overnight. We’ve all been there, done that – haven’t we? The nurse takes a few simple tests and the doctor comes in and says nonchalantly, “What seems to be the problem?” I tell him I am going to the bathroom like a racehorse. Right away he asks if I have a family history of diabetes. Me, being the manly man, immediately deny even the thought of something that serious. I begin a rowdy argument inside my head. No way! I can’t possibly have diabetes. I work out 5 times a week. I eat healthy foods. No one in my family has diabetes.

About 2 weeks ago, I was not feeling that great. To be frank, I was urinating a bit too much. I initially thought I might have some kind of kidney or bladder infection. Of course, I was making a self-diagnosis; something we should never do. I decided I would go to the urgent care center. I was hoping for some antibiotics that would clear things up overnight. We’ve all been there, done that – haven’t we? The nurse takes a few simple tests and the doctor comes in and says nonchalantly, “What seems to be the problem?” I tell him I am going to the bathroom like a racehorse. Right away he asks if I have a family history of diabetes. Me, being the manly man, immediately deny even the thought of something that serious. I begin a rowdy argument inside my head. No way! I can’t possibly have diabetes. I work out 5 times a week. I eat healthy foods. No one in my family has diabetes.

As the doctor came into the room, I overheard him talking to the nurse about blood sugar and glucose levels. He asked me a few more questions, and then does the unthinkable! (You men know exactly what I am referring to!) We are on an assembly line now, and it’s time to move on to the next battery of tests. The nurse takes a meter to read my blood sample, saying, “This will just sting a little bit.” (After my last test, the prick was a walk in the park.) This blood test showed my sugar level at 175. Not knowing what that meant, I asked and got the reply, “It should be so and so.” That’s when I realized there was a serious concern about my health.

Now the doctor dropped the bomb: “I think you may have pre-diabetes.”

You know when you get a funny feeling in the pit of your stomach, somewhere between butterflies and dread? That’s how I felt. I eat healthy, right? But then I figured I ate good things in excess. Take for instance my ginger ale. A little will not hurt, but a whole bottle at a time is loaded with way too much sugar. A little in moderation won’ hurt you, but an overload of anything is unhealthy.

I went to my doctor the following Monday and he took another blood sugar test. My level had gone from 175 to 119. I realized I still had some serious work to do, so I did what I should have been doing from long ago and that was to start eating right. I am happy to say in about 2 weeks I changed my diet completely and took another test. My sugar had gone down to 79.

Don’t get me wrong. That does not mean I am out of the woods, but I have adopted a new way of eating that has changed my life and opened my eyes. We really need to watch the way we eat and what we drink. We don’t realize the effects it could have in the years to come. For about 2 weeks, I was frantic, and trust me, no one wants to go through what I did for those 2 long weeks.

I now stay away from any sugar and carbs and many other foods considered unhealthy for me. That’s not to say I wont slip up from time to time, but I feel great and have lost some weight as well. I wanted to share my story with the hope of letting others see that we really need to be aware of what goes into our body. I took a few more tests and I hope to be out of the woods. I will keep you guys posted in the next few weeks.

Blog written by Charles Mattocks
Charles Mattocks, aka The Poor Chef, has made a name for himself as the author of Eat Cheap but Eat Well. His meals are healthy,...